http://www.geekstudies.org Sun, 20 Jul 2008 17:56:17 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en One of my posts from April, "Sexism and Misogyny in Geek Culture," saw some really long and detailed comments a few weeks back. (If it's a topic that interests you, I encourage you to go check it out.) I had to step away from blogging for a while to focus ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/07/geeks-vs-jocks The phrase "the long tail," coined by Wired editor Chris Anderson, refers to the increasing viability of selling to a small niche of consumers rather than marketing to the masses. In the book of the same name, this concept is parlayed into business advice based on the assumption that the ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/07/heads-or-tails-calling-it-in-the-air July 4th–5th brings us Nerdapalooza Southeast 2008 in Orlando (details here). I'll not be able to make it to the event myself, but I thought it warranted a mention here. First, some notes on the event itself: Nerdapalooza is a gathering of bands featuring geek rock, wizard rock, game music, nerdcore ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/nerdapalooza-links I keep meaning to give a special mention to a few blogs featuring contributions by some of my talented friends and colleagues. Probably I should just break down and create a "links" page for this site at some point, but I have a really hard time keeping those at a ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/new-renewed-and-brainy-blogs I always find it fascinating when political phenomena born in the geekiest corners of the internet somehow find their way into the physical world. I've been planning on doing a long post about this for awhile, but I never seem to get around to it. Rather than keep this ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/when-griefing-wanders-into-meatspace One of the things I have written about around here (and elsewhere) is how games have great narrative potential in the blending of story and gameplay. In games like Bioshock and Shadow of the Colossus, players must confront the morality of actions they have been forced to do in the ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/the-challenge-to-meaningful-games I've just returned from several weeks of traveling—ICA in Montreal, a couple weeks in Boston, and a week in Madrid, where I gave a talk on my gaming research—and found a flurry of emails from folks who quite rightly knew I'd be interested in reading about Nerd Girls. (Thanks CTW, ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/nerd-girls-sex-appeal-and-stereotypes I have a new open-access, peer-reviewed article up at the International Journal of Communication, titled "Seeking Truth in Video Game Ratings: Content Considerations for Media Regulation." This study presents a detailed look at the processes and reform proposals for video game content rating and regulation in the U.S. It's a ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/seeking-truth-in-video-game-ratings If a television show turned cultural phenomenon spawns diehard fans who recite dialogue by heart, wear costumes inspired by the show and buy all the tie-in products, are these devotees nerds? If the show in question is Star Trek, The X-Files or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the answer is certainly ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/06/sex-and-the-city-geeks-and-geek-studies-in-the-news A few relevant links found their way to my inbox this week. Let's have a look. The Alpha Geeks. David Brooks writes a fairly standard "triumph of the nerds" sort of op-ed for the New York Times (thanks to Cabral, Deb, Gen, and Elizabeth for the link). This article comes complete ... http://www.geekstudies.org/2008/05/links-thoughts-on-the-new-nerd-order